My health mindset is what guides me when dealing with challenging issues for myself and my clients. However, the same mindset permeates into other areas of my life too. In this post (and the video below), I share with you the five aspects of this mindset and how it can help you take charge of your health and master it by the end of the year!

Also be sure to grab this free health mastery blueprint that will help you flesh out your own health mindset!

How to Take Charge of Your Health

I do not have perfect health (few people do), but I am healthier than many. What helps me stay well is a constant movement toward health mastery. The health challenges that I’ve overcome are what make me successful as a wellness practitioner too.

The major challenges that stick out as I reflect on them are my healing journeys around Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, emergency Cesarean birth, and my son’s eczema and gut health issue as a baby.

The following are aspects of my health mindset when working toward healing , which is the goal of any health challenge. As I introduce these, I’ll share how I applied them to putting my thyroid disease into remission.

1. Holistic View

In order to heal completely, it’s important to look at your situation with a holistic view. Holistic means that you’re embracing the physical, mental, emotional, mental, and spiritual aspects that may be contributing to un-wellness. It also means that you’re looking at the situation from all angles.

I knew that there was much more to my Hashimoto’s diagnosis than what my doctor was telling me. I wanted to know the underlying cause and how my lifestyle might have contributed to the outcome, not just take medication for the rest of my life while my thyroid was quickly destroyed.

Branching out from this narrow Western view is what led me to approach healing from many different angles: whole food organic diet, detoxing, energetic clearing with acupuncture & essential oils, and meditation to manage my stress. Without this broach approach, healing may not have been possible.

2. Natural Approach and Support

I’ve come to realize over time that much of the health issues we deal with in this country are due to us being far removed from nature. We have unnatural sleep/work habits, and unnatural diet of franken-foods, we dope up on medications that are highly purified that the body has a hard time recognizing and processing.

Whenever I’ve taken a natural approach to health, things have fallen in place. I’m not just talking about using natural therapeutics, though they are also key. But even beyond that, I feel like I’ve always been offered the best wisdom from nature and practitioners who are aligned with it.

Of course this is what we learn in Traditional Chinese Medicine, that we’re microcosms of nature. So when I started this thyroid healing journey quickly after I starting TCM school, I was set up with both a natural approach, but also teachers who saw me as a whole person. All aspects of me were embraced as a patient. That, on top of the self love I was already experiencing, was deeply healing.

3. Take Responsibility as You Take Charge of Your Health

I know this is a tough one for people.

When you are unwell, or especially if you’re a parent of an unwell child, it is upsetting to think that something you did or did not do is contributing to the situation. But it is important to take responsibility for where you are now because that means that you also have the power to get yourself out of most health challenges.

When I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s, I knew I had been burning the candle at both ends. I was extremely stressed out, my sleep was messed up, I lived on coffee, I was getting lots of sinus infections with rounds of antibiotics, my diet was not the best, and I worked around toxic chemicals in my lab.

There was no way I could just turn a blind eye to this disease and continue living as I had. I took responsibility and changed what I could. Those simple actions, built over time, are what helped me heal.

4. Adjust Expectations and Take Action

Quite often people delay their self healing work because it doesn’t seem like the right time, or they feel they don’t have enough money or resources. Truly, there is no perfect time and if you really want to heal, you shouldn’t delay. Our time here on this planet is uncertain, so everyday is precious! Embrace life and work toward wellness now!

It’s really important that you have realistic expectations. Be open to stalled progress. Be open to pleasant surprises like the perfect blood work I eventually received after years of lifestyle changes. Just keep moving forward.

Trust that your body is constantly working toward balance and want you to survive and works in it’s own timing.

5. Prioritize and Focus on Your Health and Healing

If it’s really important for you to manage your health issue, you will prioritize the work needed to do so. You’ll also

I started working to heal my thyroid immediately. It was so important to me, that I didn’t care how long it would take or if it would even work at all. I just had to do whatever I could, not just for myself, but as a wellness practitioner I wanted to understand this disease for others too.

This drive for health mastery is what has made me stick to a gluten free diet for 6 years, to put filters on our water supply, and to remove our home of toxic products. So prioritizing and focusing on your health also means to remove the things that are distracting you or keeping you from healing completely.

I hope my health mindset is giving you something to think about if you’re wanting to commit to mastering your health. It has worked for me and my clients time and time again, so I know it can help you too.

If you need more help, get my Health Mastery Blueprint below which has prompts that can help you flesh out what needs to be done to promote self-healing. Please let me know how it works out for you and if there’s anything you’d change. You can share in the comments below.

Well wishes!

If you like this blueprint, then you’ll love my new 6 week course I’m offering: Yoga and Self Healing Practices for Holistic Health. I’ll teach you traditional healing practices that are both practical and deep.

Life is more fun and meaningful when you align your rhythms with nature.  Plus, the seasons can teach you so much about how to approach healthy living!  I’ve gathered some ideas for celebrating the Autumn Equinox that will help you connect to yourself, to your family, and to nature during this very special time time of the year.

What’s So Special About the Autumn Equinox?

The first day of Autumn is more than just a change in weather and pretty seasonal colors. The Autumn Equinox represents the balance of light and dark and a preparation for great change.

We can perceive the dark as being the absence of the sun since we’re continuing to have shorter days and longer nights until Winter. Symbolically, Autumn is a gradual letting go – a movement toward stillness, emptiness, and even death.

This balance of appreciating what you have (light) and letting go of what you no longer need (dark) is modeled for us in nature during this time as well. Deciduous trees undergo huge transformations by shedding their leaves. They trust that this needs to happen in order for renewal and more growth. Animals pare down their activity and focus on storing food and energy. Letting go is necessary and important in order to sustain life.

There can be a sense of loss during this season too, so it’s important for families to spend more time with each other and develop closer, stronger, more loving and supportive bonds.

Here’s some ways to celebrate Autumn by yourself or with your family and friends to honor the change in season.

9 Special Ways to Celebrate The Autumn Equinox

1. Go On A Nature Walk

Let’s start with the easiest way to appreciate nature: just walk among it. There is so much to notice, especially in Fall with the change in colors and falling leaves.

But what else might you notice when you walk? What’s the difference in smell? How are the animals behaving? Talk about this with your family and friends. Or if you’re doing this alone, maybe you can sit down and journal about what you’re noticing.

2. Make An Autumn Wreath

From your nature walk pick up what nature as discarded and add them to a wreath to adorn your home. Acorns, multi-colored leaves, dried berries and corn, grain grasses, vines, and dried end-of-summer flowers, can all be woven or glued onto a circular wreath and hung on your front door.

Each time you enter your home you’ll be reminded of the change we all need to embrace during this time.

3. Celebrate With An Autumn Equinox Feast

You don’t need to wait until Thanksgiving for a special feast! And all of Autumn can be a time for you to express gratitude for what is bountiful in your life.

Make a special meal with seasonal fruits, vegetables, and spices. These may be different than what’s around in November with Thanksgiving. Right now in California we have lots of figs, grapes, corn, and late summer squashes. The different food makes it more unique! You can talk about what Autumn means to you as your family gathers.

You might want to try cooking a dish with acorns which are known to symbolize strength, potential, fertility, and new beginnings. They are also a traditional food in many places in the world, so a good food for you to become reacquainted with!

Acorns can be fermented, ground, and made into a flour to use in many yummy recipes. Here’s an excellent article that will teach you just about everything you need to know about acorns.

Enjoy!

4. Do A Special Yoga And Meditation Practice

I love to do Sun Salutations to honor the Equinoxes and the Solstices alike. Surya Namaskara is traditionally done as a prayer, a prostration to the Sun, so fitting to celebrate the change in season and the meaning behind it.

I used to do 108 Sun Salutations in my younger years since it’s an auspicious number. Now that I’m 47 and a little slower-moving, I realize how ridiculous that is. Intention is most important, not how much you do!

Just do as many Sun Salutations of versions A, B, or C that you feel comfortable with, bringing your intention into each breath and movement.

Or if Sun Salutations are not your thing, you can choose to do this Autumn Yin Yoga practice that targets the Lung and Large intestine meridians that are associated with this season.

You can simply do a Gratitude Meditation instead.

Or, do all three recommendations! That’s what I like to do!

5. Candle Ceremony

Light a candle in the dark to represent the balance of energy at the Equinox. You can write down all the things you’d like to clear from your life. Tear them up or carefully burn them in the candle. Then you can write down all the things you now want to bring into your life.

6. Have A Harvest Party With Friends

If you have a garden, is there any better way to enjoy your bounty than to share with others? You can get some friends and neighbors together who also have gardens. Each person can bring fruit, vegetables, flowers, grains – whatever they have plenty of. You can trade items and talk about what to do with them in Autumn while enjoying some seasonal teas and treats.

7. Clear and Bless Your Home

Bring balance to your home with an energetic clearing. This can be done many ways, depending on the healing practices you study.

I love to burn a Sage wand and go around to the corner of each room in my house, asking for all negativity to be cleared from our home and our lives.

Then I do the same with Palo Santo which has a more revitalizing energy to it. I go around and ask that we bring in more happiness, health, and prosperity to fill the space.

The same can be done with essential oils, though I do this more regularly and not as a special ritual. This diffuser blend is fabulous at clearing negative energy:

Clear The Space Diffuser Blend

• 2 drops Lemongrass
• 2 drops Clary Sage
• 2 drops Lime

Lemongrass clears stagnant energy and negativity. Clary Sage clears confusion and brings in more clarity and intuitive guidance. Lime cleanses the heart and mind, promoting more gratitude for the gift of life. The combination of these three also smells amazing!

8. Fallen Leaf Ceremony

This is a fun and quick one! If you have enough fallen leaves around your property, rake them all up into a pile. Pick up an armful of leaves and throw them up in the air, mindful of what you’d like to let go of this season to create more harmony in your life.

If you’re doing this in a group, it’s fun for everyone to shout out what their letting go of. Then afterwards you can all talk about what you’re making space for in your life, what you’re now wanting to bring in.

9. Honor A Tree In Your Neighborhood

Spend some time picnicking under a tree’s shade, or hugging a tree, or singing to a tree. You can bury special items like herbs or crystals in the ground near the tree with a blessing.

These suggestions may sound silly to some, but I don’t care. Our disconnection to nature is what’s fueling much of the dissent in our world right now and that needs to change.

One thing we can all agree on is that we have a symbiotic relationship with trees and we need more of them. So you can also use this special time to plant some new ones.

Want To Learn More About Autumn Equinox Celebrations?

You can check out my Pinterest Board here for more ideas and recipes!

Which of these Autumn Equinox Celebration ideas is your favorite? Do you have any other ideas of how you can celebrate Autumn in your home? Let’s hear about them in the comments!

Are you stressed out and want to do something about it that greatly improves you life? If yes, then you’ll want to keep reading because, not all stress relieving methods are the same. Here’s 5 aspects to stress management techniques that I’ll share with you to keep the negative effects of stress at bay.

Everyone experiences stress. Yet since stress is a response to what is happening from someone’s individual perspective, the experience of stress is difference for everyone!

It’s known that as stress accumulates over time, your health can really suffer. So it’s a very good idea to try to relieve it every day. Some ways to relieve it are worlds better than others though, so it’s really important to talk about these five aspects to look for.

Before we get into this list, take a moment to think about or write down your favorite ways to relieve stress. When you’ve had a bad day, what do you do to relieve the stress that results?

After you go through this list, you can decide if your stress relieving method makes the cut or if you think you need to make some adjustments

5 Aspects of the Best Stress Relieving Methods

1. Is It Holistic?

When you’re doing something to relieve stress, does it benefit your physical, mental, and emotional health?

It’s common for people to just prioritize their body, relieving stress that shows up as physical tension. So in the case of a tension headache, they might just take medication to remove the pain, the symptom. But this ignores the fact that there’s likely emotional or mental stress that is manifesting as the physical headache! So to completely let go of stress, the work needs to be on an emotional and mental level too.

Spirituality comes into play as well. When one is not feeling supported in life, like they have no purpose, that is a spiritual issue. So stress might have a root that is even deeper than the heart and mind.

It would be best for you to choose stress relieving activities that are holistic, which means that you give equal attention to body, heart, mind, and spirit.

Yoga is an excellent example of a holistic activity that has a potential to relieve stress on every level. Just be careful here, that you’re not making assumptions about a certain class. The depth of your experience is dependent on the teacher, if you’re doing a led-class, but also on your approach.

You may want to check out Yogic Approach to Stress Relief to make sure that you’re making the most of your stress-relieving practice.

2. Are You Checking Out Or Checking In?

Choose an activity where you’re constantly checking in with ourself. 

Watching TV is an activity that many people like to do because they no longer experience the stress of the day while they’re doing it. But this is because they’re completely focused on something else. They are “checked out”. 

The stress will still be there when the show is over though. Nothing has changed or shifted!

It’s best to choose an activity like journaling with which you can check in with yourself and actively process what’s going on.  In fact, just writing down how you feel can shine a light on how stress is showing up in your life and it will be easier to see how you can avoid or release it.  Typically, once our feelings are acknowledged, they shift into something less intense and the physical tension shifts too.

I hope you’ll try it! Here’s more information on how journaling can help you.

3. Does It Support Your Health?

Some people reach for alcohol, drugs, or engage in addictive habits when they’re stressed out. This is a way of checking out and unconsciously disconnecting from the source of stress.

This is important to talk about, especially right now when we’ve had continuous stress from the Coronavirus pandemic for six straight months. Obviously, it’s not the best idea to rely on a stress relieving method that harms your health when done multiple times, every single day.

So sorry moms, I’m not laughing at your memes anymore about how much wine you’re needing to deal with your kids who are learning at home. Yes, believe me, I know it’s stressful. But there are much better ways to handle it that actually improve your health.

You can try this breathing practice, for a relaxing start to your day.

4. Does It Offer Short-term Or Long Term Effects?

Yes, sometimes we need to do something to take the edge off quickly.  But typically these are not the things that will lead to long-lasting effects. 

Engaging in stress management practices like deep breathing, mindfulness, aromatherapy, journaling and yoga can actually develop you to a degree that you can avoid stress or you’re just less affected by possible stressful events.  This cannot be said for quick pampering activities like getting a massage or your nails done.

Believe me, I LOVE to pamper myself.  I am not at all knocking these activities and recommend you keep doing them. But I would be clear that it’s for self-love, not as much for stress relief. The reason I don’t like that association is because, again, stress needs to be managed daily, so the way to relieve it needs to be simple and accessible, daily. It also needs to be something you can do for yourself.  

5. Does It Strengthen Your Connection To Others? 

Whatever you choose to do to manage your stress will be even more impactful if the effects are noticed and felt by other people in your life in a positive way.  It is very clear that when I’m meditating regularly, my home life and my relationships are more harmonious. 

What about meeting with friends – going on hikes, going out to dinner, or meeting for drinks? Those meeting can be extremely positive and supportive!  Or they can be detrimental and useless. It really depends on whether you’re having deep conversations that help you grow or if you’re just drinking wine and complaining about how life sucks! See, it’s what you do with the time that matters.

Conclusion

I hope this information is helpful and that is doesn’t trigger you!  I’m only going to recommend the stress management techniques that work effectively and consistently.

If you want to learn more about self-healing stress relieving practices, join my free 5-day Stress Less Holistic Health Challenge that is beginning on Sept. 28, 2020. 

This challenge will also help you with consistency and accountability if it’s just hard for you to make the time for these stress relieving activities.  We have a Facebook group that you can join, so we all support each other. 

What is your favorite way to relieve stress? Are you still thinking this is the best way to manage it now that you’ve reviewed this list? Please let me know in the comments!

Are you looking for natural, impactful ways to tame stress?  Is it becoming more challenging to manage it since we’ve been bombarded with one event after another this year?  Want to stay ahead of stress and learn how to release it quickly?  (Remember, there’s still U.S. elections to come!)  If so, then you’ll want to join my free 5-day Stress Less Holistic Health Challenge starting September 28!

You see, mini vacations and beauty treatments will only do so much in helping you deal with the challenges of our times. And dropping back several glasses of alcohol, taking drugs that relax you, and loading up on sugar can provide temporary relief, but damage your health in the long term (which creates another huge layer of stress).

The most calm, composed, resilient people right now are those who are fully awake and aware of what’s happening in them and around them. And they manage stress daily by natural means, constantly trying to improve their holistic health.

Who Will Benefit From This Challenge?

This challenge is perfect for you if you want to:

• Relax your body with natural, nourishing self-care practices
• Clear your mind in order to focus on what’s really important
• Open your heart to experience more love, patience, and understanding (with yourself and others!)
• Learn how to take life in stride regardless of what is coming at you (thanks 2020 for the opportunity to practice this 😅)

You can’t control what’s happening around you, but you can control how you respond! I can teach you!

How Does The Free Health Challenge For Stress Work?

The challenge begins on Monday Sept. 28. Each morning (7:00am PDT) of the challenge, I’ll give you a practice that you can work on throughout the day to help you approach it in a more easy-going manner. Then in the evening (7:00pm PDT), I’ll be coming on LIVE in our community Facebook group to do a self-healing practice with you to help you release any stress that may have accumulated throughout the day.

If you’re not on Facebook, that’s fine. I’ll be emailing out these practices too. (The evening one will just be a little delayed since I’ll need to process the video replay to share with you).

I’ll be pulling from my expertise, sharing practices including yoga, meditation, breathing exercises, qigong, acupressure massage, aromatherapy, journaling, and more!

We’ll take some time to compare how your stress level has shifted throughout the week. You’ll then take what worked well for you and integrate it into your daily & weekly routine.

I know you will see a significant change! Your friends and family will probably notice too!

I look forward to working with you!

I know this free health challenge is going to help many people manage their stress and find more joy in their lives! If you have any friends or family members who could use help releasing stress, who are open to natural healing practices and willing to do the work, please share this post with them and encourage them to join!

The world needs this shift in perspective, how we see and manage the challenges before us in a positive way. I’d love for you to join me in modeling what that change looks like!

Kids are dealing with so many health issues and pressures these days!  It may be hard for them to name their feelings and this can result in meltdowns or growing emotional problems. Mindfulness meditation is a doorway to these feelings that they can experience in their bodies.  But kids meditation makes the biggest difference if it’s done consistently and modeled by the adults in their lives.

My son and I created this kids meditation not just for children, but for the whole family.  Together, you can train up your mindfulness skills, develop emotional intelligence, promote anger management, and learn to treat each other (and yourselves!) with more kindness.  These mindfulness techniques bring balanced awareness to the body, heart, and mind.  They form a framework that can help your children grow into compassionate beings who approach life with gratitude, hope, and bold enthusiasm!

You can watch the video below, or just read through the instructions and try it on your own.  It would be really helpful for your family to talk afterwards, or to have some time for personal journaling.

If you want even more help dealing with emotional stress, check out this guide which you can incorporate into your mindfulness practice.  Enjoy!

Meditation Video for Kids and Families

How to Meditate with Your Kids

Take a minute to get a small object that is precious to you. It could be a beautiful rock, crystal, button, or even a small toy.  Don’t worry if you can’t find anything right now, you can just use your hands instead.

You can sit up with your legs crossed or lay down in a comfortable spot on the floor.  Let’s place your special object over your belly button.

Meditation for Kids Instructions

Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths.

Feel the precious item on your belly rise and fall as you breathe or feel your belly moving into your hand.

It rises up as you breathe in and it gently falls when you breathe out.

Let your breath be smooth and slow so it feels easy and it feels good.

Mindfulness of the Body

Now we’re going to use your imagination to make your mind more full and aware.

See your precious item shining with a bright white light, like a little star.  If you’re using your hand, imagine that a ball of white light comes out of your hand.  This ball of light sinks down into your belly and shines in every direction.

It goes down into each leg: your right leg, your left leg, and each toe.  It goes up into your chest and head and out through each arm and every finger.

See your whole body shining with this white light from inside, as bright and as powerful as our sun.  Can you feel the power of your body?  Does it feel warm or cool?  Do you feel heavy or do you feel like you’re floating like a balloon?

Mindfulness of Emotions

Keep your body shining bright and now we’re going to place your precious item or your hand on the center of your chest where your heart is.

How are you feeling in your heart right now?  Are you feeling love, happiness, anger, fear, boredom, or excited? 

Whatever you’re feeling is absolutely normal!  We all have these feelings.  But sometimes they can get a little too big.  Sometimes our anger may make us hurt ourselves or others with our words or with our bodies.  Sometimes when we get too excited we may knock things over. 

Let’s shine this bright light on our  feelings right now so you know what you’re feeling and you can control what your body does when you feel this way.  Sometimes when we shine this light on our feelings, they change into something else!

As you take some more deep breaths, maybe your light shines even brighter.

Now we’re going to take off our precious item, put it to the side, and stretch your arms up overhead.  If you’re laying down you can slowly roll over and come back up to sit.

You can keep this light burning bright is side you for as long as you remember to do so, letting it relax you and comfort you from the inside like it’s giving you a big hug and a warm smile.

And take a moment to actually give yourself a big hug.

And if you’re doing this with your family, you can give them a big hug too.

Remember that you can do this mindfulness meditation anytime! I hope it keeps your heart open and loving.

If you have tight hips or low back pain (which are usually related), then you will love this hip opening yoga sequence. 

Not only will you get the relief you need, but the addition of Yin Yoga postures can help release stuck emotions that can be causing these physical imbalances in the first place.  This is because we focus on mobilizing the energy in the Liver and Gallbladder meridians that run through the inner and outer legs, respectively.

You can learn more about how to balance liver and gallbladder energy in Spring Health Tips from Traditional Chinese Medicine . These organs and channels tend to become imbalanced in Spring, resulting in a condition we call Liver Qi Stagnation.  It results in issues like:

• eye strain
• headaches
• angry outbursts
• tight hips & groin
• menstrual irregularities
• PMS
• and much more…

Of course some people just have a this type of constitution and can be prone to these issues at any time.  This makes this Yin Yoga Liver and Gallbladder yoga practice even more important so that you can do it regularly to find balance in your life.

Before you begin, make sure you have:

• a blanket or cushion to prop up the hips
• 1-2 blocks 

You may  also want to download my Stress-Relieving acupressure guide.  You can do these acupressure points while you hold some of the Yin Yoga shapes!  This acupressure sequence will make the yoga practice even more effective and can help you sleep at night.  You’ll love it!

Hip Opening Yoga Practice Video

I hope you enjoyed this hip opening yoga practice! If you were experiencing issues with Liver Qi Stagnation before you began, did they resolve by the end? Let us know in the comments!

Do you ever feel like you’re running on auto-pilot? Do you feel like life just happens to you? Or do you make conscious choices to shape your life?This meditation, mindfulness of intentions, can give you more control in your life. 

We’ve been doing a 5-part mindfulness meditation series, and with the last four (Mindfulness of Breath, Body Awareness, Emotions, and Thoughts), we’ve been exploring different anchors of awareness as techniques to keep the mind in the present moment.  However, when we focus on mindfulness of intentions, we’re focusing on WHY we are practicing meditation, not HOW.

Our success in experiencing the benefits of meditation hinges largely on how personal, how deep, and how meaningful our intention is.  Your positive experience will then feed you commitment to continuing to meditate.

For example, if your intention to meditate is just to get a good grade on a test, once the test is over, you may quickly drop the practice.  But if you’re meditating to open your mind to all possibilities and absorb new information readily so your school, work, or home life can thrive, do you see how this is much grander?  Once you start to see positive changes, meditation will easily become a stronger part of your life.

We must also remember that intentions are seeds of potential that you will grow as you are mindful of them.  So intentions must be positive, kind, and for the benefit of all involved. 

Here’s another example: an intention to meditate in order to be better or smarter than someone else is not growing intelligence, it’s growing competition and comparison. You’ll need to rephrase it so it’s clear that you wish to benefit, but without harming anyone else with animosity.

I make intentions for my yoga & meditation practices, for the yoga classes I teach, for my acupuncture sessions with clients, for my doTERRA business activities, and for my social media posts.  I try to stay mindful of my intentions in every conversation I have. It helps me to be more diplomatic with relationships. It helps me anticipate the results of my actions – good and bad.

If it sounds like this would bring more balance to your life, then you’ll love this meditation! 

Guided Meditation: Mindfulness of Intentions 

Determining your Intention

Prepare your meditation space so it’s quiet and comfortable. In the video I used the doTERRA Melissa, Litsea, and Blue Tansy essential oil blends on my wrists and heart space. Emotionally, these oils help with manifesting light and positivity which is an intention I’m focusing on right now.

Come into a seated position on the floor or in a chair. If you’re on the floor, sitting on a cushion will elevate your hips and help your legs relax in the hip joints. Let your hands rest on your knees or thighs.

Before we start the formal meditation, let’s take some time to set an intention.

Breathe slow, even, and deep to bring the mind down into the body. Let your awareness rest at the heart space. Notice what you’re feeling.

If you have an intention, you can say it to yourself now. If you don’t have an intention, stay connected with the feelings you have in your hear and ask yourself why you’re meditating. Simply keep asking until something bubbles up to the surface.

If nothing comes up, you might want to use a standard bodhisattva intention that goes something like this (the following is a combination of what I’ve learned from Sarah Powers and Stephen Batchelor):

I vow to awaken – in body, heart, and mind – for the benefit of all beings. I appreciate it’s immeasurable value in how I live my life and know that it’s possible, in this moment, regardless of conditions.

Mindfulness Meditation Instructions

It’s your choice now, where you would like to anchor your attention. It can be on the breath, on physical sensation, on emotions, or thoughts as they surface. You can even focus on sound, which we haven’t talked about yet.

Remember that these anchors are simply features of the present moment. Once you have some experience, you can even let your mind float from anchor to anchor, whatever is grabbing your attention with each passing breath.

There is a key difference with mindfulness of intentions though. When you inevitably become distracted, instead of simply returning back to your anchor, remind yourself of your intention. Remember why you’re doing this and why it’s so important. Then go ahead and return to your anchor. Chances are, your awareness will be stronger now.

After 10 minutes or longer, when you’re ready to come out, return to your deep, even breathing. Open up all the sense organs to notice what you’re feeling on the skin, smelling, tasting, and hearing. Then slowly open your eyes.

Before you get up, you may wish to make an intention for the rest of the day. It’s my hope that setting intentions will become a natural part of every activity. Living intentionally can give you a greater sense of control and responsibility for every choice you make. I know for me, it certainly makes life for special and enjoyable!

How did it feel to focus on intentions during your meditation? If you have any insight that you’d like to share, I’d love to hear about it in the comments!

Please share this meditation with a friend, since there are many who can use this support now! Thank you & well wishes to you…

In this last month we’ve been exploring the different anchors of awareness in mindfulness meditation. Today we’ll be doing the 4th guided meditation in this 5-part series, this time focused on mindfulness of thoughts. 

The goal of meditation is always to live in the present moment, regardless of the circumstances in your life. It is an extremely helpful tool when we’re challenged physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

I want to clarify this upfront because many people incorrectly believe that meditation is about emptying the mind. They know that their mind never stops and doesn’t see that this is possible. As a result, they don’t even try, or they give up to soon.

With mindfulness of thoughts, we’ll be watching our ideas, thoughts, and fantasies as they enter the mind but then stay unattached as we watch them leave. It is a more advanced practice, so you may want to start with with one of our previous meditations if you are a beginner meditator: Mindfulness of Breath, Body Awareness, or Emotions.

Guided Meditation: Mindfulness of Thoughts Instruction

Meditation Instruction: Using Your Thoughts as an Anchor

Prepare your meditation space so it’s quiet and comfortable. In the video I used the doTERRA InTune essential oil blend on the back of my neck and soles of my feet to help me feel grounded and focus the mind. You can use essential oils or any other tools that will help support your practice.

Come into a seated position on the floor or in a chair. If you’re on the floor, sitting on a cushion will elevate your hips and help your legs relax in the hip joints. Let your hands rest on your knees or thighs. Set a timer for at least 10 minutes and close your eyes.

Take several slow deeps breaths. You may want to make each part of the breath 4-5 seconds in length, making sure the inhalation and exhalation are equal. This is called “sama vrtti”, or equal fluctuation, which slows the mind down, slowing the transitions from thought to thought.

Now let the breath move naturally. Let the mind shift from watching the breath to watching and feeling the body breathing. You can then notice any emotions related to the body and breath. Finally, let your mind rest on thoughts.

This is a profound experience where the mind watches the mind. We are tapping into a higher state of consciousness and awareness.

Notice where the mind is and what thought is in the foreground of your experience. As you notice it, you can name it “thinking”, or “planning”, or “remembering”, or whatever the mind is doing.

While you don’t want to get caught up in the thought, it is interesting to notice if your mind consistently moves in the same direction, caught in the past or in the future.

After the thought is acknowledged, let it go. You may wish to visualize the mind as a wide open sky and you can place the thought in a cloud to let it float on by.

It is inevitable that you’ll find yourself caught up in your thoughts. When this happens, simply focus your mind on the breath, then the body, then on your feelings, and back to the mind watching the mind.

Eventually, you’ll experience less time managing your thoughts and more time in the sweet spaces in between.

When you’re ready to end your meditation, do so gradually by opening up all the senses except for your sight. Find a balance of internal and external awareness. Then open your eyes.

How did it feel to focus on thoughts during your meditation? Did you notice a pattern in your mental habits? How are you feeling now? Please let me know in the comments!

Committing to meditation for just 10 minutes a day is such a simple, yet huge endeavor that can bring more peace into your life.

Please share this meditation with a friend, since there are many who can use this support now! Thank you & well wishes to you…

Welcome to the third of our 5-part series on mindfulness meditation.  This time, we’re focusing on mindfulness of emotions.  Not only will you be able to tame the fluctuations of the mind to experience more clarity, but will also be able to process intense emotions.

As I write, we’ve been sheltering-in-place to slow the spread of Covid-19 for over a month now.  Emotions are intense, but it’s not just because people are afraid of getting the disease.  We are now dealing with the emotional and mental repercussions of being isolated from others, dealing with financial hardships, and for many, a loss of purpose.

How is Meditation Good for Emotional Health?

It’s important to recognize that no emotion is innately bad!  We humans are emotional beings and our capacity to feel is what makes life so deep and meaningful.  So meditation is not meant to remove any emotion from our lives.

However, where we get stuck is when we become reactive, impulsive, or defensive because of being caught up in our emotions.  This is more harmful to us and our relationships than the emotion alone. 

Meditation give you a wider perspective where you can see your emotions clearly.  You’re able to pause and give intense emotions space.  Quite often they diffuse into something less intense when you can see them alone, separate from the story that you feel caused them.  Meditation helps you to live with all emotions regardless of whether you like them or not.

Guided Meditation: Mindfulness of Emotions Instruction

Meditation Preparation

Is this your first time with mindfulness meditation? You may want to look back on our last two sessions Mindfulness of Breathing and Mindfulness of the Body for helpful tips on what to expect.

Find a place where you won’t be disturbed. Create the ambiance for your practice that will promote relaxation and strengthen your resolve to meditate.

For this mindfulness of emotions meditation, I used the doTERRA Adaptiv Calming blend. It helps to bring you into a relaxed, parasympathetic state of being. It keeps the heart open, allowing for more space to feel.

Meditation Instruction: Using the Emotions as an Anchor

Come to sit in a comfortable position on the floor or in a chair. Let your hands rest on your knees or thighs with the palms turned up or down. Set a timer for at least 10 minutes and close your eyes.

There’s always an overlap of anchors in mindfulness meditation. First, bring your awareness to the breath, letting the mind settle as it watches the smooth steady flow.

Next, feel the breath deep in the body. Allow your mind to settle down with the breath. Feel your whole body breathing. Expand and open with each inhalation. Release tension with each exhalation.

Finally, bring your awareness to your physical heart space. Which emotion is most on the surface here? Can you name it? See if you can sit with this raw emotion with out getting into the story of why you feel this way.

Do you notice anything else as you’re feeling this way? How is your body responding to this emotion? Are you tense? Is your breath constrictedIs your stomach queasy? Do you feel palpitations as your heart beats faster? Again, just stay with these raw feelings and do not react by turning your attention away.

Be as present and as accepting with these emotions as a loving, peaceful parent would be with a child who’s having a meltdown. (Seriously, this perspective really works to create more self acceptance and compassion).

If you do notice that your mind has drifted, go all the way back to feeling the breath moving deep in the body. Rest here for a moment, and then slowly return to the heart space.

Repeat this over and over for the amount of time you’ve committed to being here. When you’re ready to come back, return to deep breathing. Allow the sense organs to slowly open to what’s happening around you.

Before you get up, take note of how you’re feeling now vs. how you were feeling when you began. Any change is progress! Remember this to help you commit to continuing for your personal benefit and those you’re in relationship with.

How did you feel after doing this meditation? Did you notice a shift in your mood? I’m eager to hear about it in the comment below!

Please share this meditation with a friend, since there are many who can use emotional support right now! Thank you for considering it! Well wishes…

When you’re ready, please try our next meditation in this series, Mindfulness of Thoughts.